I first came into contact with the Department of Health and Ageing in 2010 when Bill had had one of his strokes and we had to rush him, by ambulance, to hospital.  While we were there in Emergency, we were interviewed by a very keen, knowledgeable and competent social worker.  I have to be thankful to her, not only for the Department of Health and Ageing support that she secured for Bill and me, but also for the introduction that she gave me to a new language that I was going to have to learn, that is, that language which we might call Health Speak.

Belinda’s conversation with us went something like this:

“Look,” she said, “We could get you an ACAT for Bill.  Would you like him to have an ACAT?”

Though it sounded painful and I had no idea what she was talking about, I thought that I had better take everything that was on offer.

“Yes,” I answered.  “We would like an ACAT.  But, what is it?”

“ACAT stands for Aged Care Assessment Team,” she replied. “It’ll take a few months for the team to get around to you but when it does come to assess Bill, the team members will look to see where you need help and will try to get you the Government assisted help that you require.”

“Great!” I exclaimed.  I particularly liked hearing the words Government assisted.

“Bill and I can mostly manage everything by ourselves,” I went on, “But there are times, especially with showering and dressing, when I know I’m not winning and I also know that it’s only going to get worse.”

“That’s true!” she said, “And now that Bill has had another CVA,” she went on, consolingly, “You’ll be needing more and more help.”

“You do know that, don’t you?” she added, noticing the look of surprise on my face. “They did tell you, didn’t they, that Bill suffered a CVA?”

“They told us,” I replied, thoughtfully, “That Bill had had a stroke.  But, what’s a CVA?”

“It’s stroke,” Belinda answered quickly.  “A cerebrovascular accident.  Bill’s had a stroke and he’s very likely to need a lot of help with most ADLs in the future.”

She looked at my blank face and added, “Activities of daily living. Bill will need help with most activities of daily living.”

“How will they help us?” I asked in bewilderment, still trying to get my head around this new language of initials that was confronting me.

“They’ll probably offer you a HACC package,” she replied. “I think you’ll be eligible for HACC.”

She baulked as she saw the panic on my face.

“HACC stands for Home and Community Care,” she hastened to add, enlightening me.  “Nursing aides will come into your home to help you cope with Bill’s hygiene needs and to give you some respite time. I don’t think that you will be eligible for an EACHD package, yet ….. that’s the Extended Aged Care at Home Dementia package, but you’ll certainly be eligible for HACC.”

“I’m very happy for all that you are organising for us,” I said, gratefully.

“That’s all right,” she answered. “That’s my job.  And, how are you getting home?” she added, thoughtfully.

“I’ll call a cab,” I replied.

“Oh, well, I can help you with that, too,” she rejoined. “I’ll just go and get the forms. We’ll fill them in and get you subsidised taxi fares as well.”

Then she added, with a grin on her face, “And, can I have your copy of the EPOA again, please? I’ll need to photocopy it for the Department of Transport.”

“Certainly!” I replied, beaming.  I couldn’t believe it, but I knew this one.  With a look of triumph on my face, I rifled through my folder of papers, took out a file and, with a flourish, handed her my copy of Bill’s Enduring Power of Attorney.

But I was never going to win this game that we were playing.  She still had a card up her sleeve.

“And, of course,” she said, taking the EPOA from my hands, “You do know, don’t you, that after Bill has had the ACAT visit, they’ll send you a copy of his ACCR? It should be very interesting.”

Noticing the look of bewilderment on my face, she added, almost as if it were an afterthought:

“The ACCR is Bill’s Aged Care Client Record!” and she gave me a wave as she hurried off down the hall to the photocopier.

(Though this conversation is based on fact, it has been embellished, somewhat, to enhance its interest.)

TABLE of ABBREVIATIONS

CVA	Cerebrovascular Accident
ACAT	Aged Care Assessment Team
ADLs	Activities of Daily Living
HACC	Home and Community Care Package
EACH	Extended Aged Care at Home Package
EACHD	Extended Aged Care at Home Dementia Package
EPOA	Enduring Power of Attorney
POA	Power of Attorney
ACCR	Aged Care Client Record